All in Time
by AlongForTheRide
Summary: This story takes place at the end of the season 3 finally. It’s about how Jack and Kate get off the island, how they arrived at the point we saw in the flash forward, and if they make it back to the island.
1. Going Back

Title: All in time.

Rating: So far it's PG

Summary: This story takes place at the end of the season 3 finally. It's about how Jack and Kate get off the island, how they arrived at the point we saw in the flash forward, and if they make it back to the island. I'm going to focus mainly on the relationship between Jack and Kate, though other characters will be included in the story, the point of view will be primarily Jack and Kate's.

Disclaimer: I do not own Lost, or anyway of its characters, I'm just borrowing them for the story. No copyright infringement intended.

Chapter One

Going Back

"We have to go back!" Jacks words were now lost by the sound of the aircraft taking off just above him. He watched as the rear lights of her car disappeared into the darkness. She was gone. Kate had vanished along with the small amount of hope he had left in him. Jack didn't know why he thought this time would be different. That somehow the outcome would change. But it hadn't. She drove away, just like every other time Jack had tried to persuade her to come back to the island with him. He had a feeling that this was the last time that she would ever come back to see him.

Jack walked slowly back to his car, but instead of getting in, he leaned forward with his arm on the door frame and let his head rest there for a moment. The feeling of having failed once again was too much for Jack. He balled up all his anger and frustration into a fist, and plunged it through the window. The pain in Jack's hand was nothing compared to the constant agony he felt in his heart. Locke had been right all along. He warned Jack, and told him that he wasn't supposed to make that call. Had he only been able to see the dangers, or known that it would turn out to be the day that Jack would come to regret for the rest of his life, he never would have made that call. The ramifications of that day haunted Jack and it sent him spiraling into depression, which led to his alcoholism and drug addiction. Jack knew it was his fault for letting his relationship with Kate fall apart. He pushed her away, though it was not his intention to do so. If only somehow Jack could get back to the island, perhaps he could get the chance to make things right. It was something he knew he had to fix, if it was in any way possible. Jack found the island before and was determined to find it again.

(_Ok so I know it's short, but I promise the next one is longer_.)


	2. The Day of the Call

Chapter 2

The day of the call.

"Can you get a fix on our location?"

"Well hell yeah we can, sit tight. We'll be right there." Jack looked at Kate for confirmation, that she had heard the same thing that he had. That right at that very moment rescue was on its way. Jack closed his eyes as a sense of relief overcame him. He heard the cries of joy and disbelief of the rest of the survivors surrounding him. _Was it really over? Would they finally leave this island?_ Jack thought as he opened his eyes and looked over at Ben. Yes there was a chance that these people could be as bad as Ben said, but there was also a chance that they weren't. And it was that chance to get off this island that he was willing to risk everything for.

"Mr. Shephard, You there?" The voice broke on the satellite phone. Jack lifted up the phone to speak into it.

"Yeah, I'm here."

"We should reach the north shore by tomorrow morning. I'll send a team out to meet you."

"O.k. we'll be there." Jack confirmed.

"Great, now I need to speak to Naomi."

Jack looked over at Kate while thinking about how to tell the man who would be their rescue that one of his crew was dead. Kate was standing over Naomi's body. She looked down at the body and shook her head no.

The man sensed Jack's delay. "What happened, where is she?" The man asked with concern.

"On the way to the radio tower, she was injured, an'… and I couldn't save her. I did everything I could, but with limited supplies…I'm sorry." Jack was cut off by the man thankfully; he couldn't tell the man that she was deliberately murdered by one of their own people.

"It's o.k., I understand. You can explain it to the team once they get there." The man said in a disheartened tone.

"Okay, I will." Jack promised and turned off the phone.

Jack looked up and saw the group of people. The weariness and uncertainty was unmistakably clear on their faces, and he knew they were all wondering what to do next.

"We'll take a rest for about an hour, then we'll start heading back to the beach." Jack announced. Everyone seemed to be in agreement with this decision.

Jack pulled out the black walkie-talkie he took from Ben and tried to contact someone from the beach.

"Hurly? Hurly? Are you there?"

"Yeah dude," he said out of breath, "are they, you know, like coming to rescue us?"

Jack smiled, "I hope so Hurly, hey, can you put Juliet on, I need to ask her a question?"

"Yeah sure." There was a pause, then Jack could hear Hurly shouting Juliet's name.

"Jack, you there?" Juliet's voice came through the walkie.

"Yeah I'm here, how is everything over there, you o.k.?"

"Yeah Jack, everything's fine, we've been digging graves."

"Oh."

"Jack what happened? Were you able to get through?"

Jack filled Juliet in on everything that had happened, and wanted to know if she knew anything about the people that Ben had warned them about. Juliet said she didn't know anything about them. Jack informed her that a team would be there by tomorrow morning, or mid afternoon. He also told her that they needed to take precautions because though he didn't believe Ben's story, these people were still strangers, and they may or may not be who they say they are. Juliet agreed. He overheard Sayid say something in the background.

"We shouldn't be discussing this any further over the radio, who knows who could be listening."

Jack knew Sayid was right and after telling them to be careful, he said goodbye and turned off the radio. Jack felt someone gently grab his arm. Jack turned and saw Kate standing next to him. She smiled at him half apologetically for anything she may have interrupted.

"Hey."

He smiled back at her "Hey, everything o.k.?" he asked.

"Um yeah, can I get you to help me with something?" Kate nodded towards Naomi's body, Jack nodded and followed her.

Kate kneeled down beside Naomi's body. She had fallen onto her stomach, with her eyes staring vacantly and her mouth still open with blood. Kate looked up at Jack who stood silently next to her.

"I just thought we should…" Kate tried explaining to him, but Jack knew what she wanted to do. They would take her with them back to the beach, back to her own people. Whoever they were, they probably would want to burry her properly.

"No, you're right, Kate." Jack said kneeling down beside her. He gently closed Naomi's eyes and helped Kate roll her onto her back. Jack noticed Kate had already removed the knife from the woman's back, and proceeded to use it to rip apart some clothing. Kate noticed his gaze.

"This should be enough to cover her with." She said while passing him a few pieces.

"Yeah" Jack said distantly. He was about to put a piece of cloth over Naomi's face but he stopped as the thought of Locke's action today went through his mind.

"You okay?" Kate asked concerned. "I can finish this. You should go rest."

"No, I'm fine."

"You did the right thing Jack." Kate said with reassurance. She could always sense when there was something wrong with him.

"I know. It's just; first it was the sub and now this; I just don't understand why Locke would do this."

Kate looked at him for a moment. "What sub?"

"The sub Juliet and I were going to use to get off the island, Locke blew it up right before we were about to get on."

Kate looked down and shook her head in disbelief. "Locke had this all planned out. He used you as an excuse to come with me, when really he was just looking for their camp. Locke's got his own agenda now, and rescue doesn't seem to be part of it."

They were interrupted by the sudden sound of someone yelling. Jack stood up and saw that Alex was yelling for someone to stop. Jack looked at the tree that Ben was tied to, and saw that he was gone. Locke was carrying Ben's unconscious body over his shoulder with his hands still bound together.

"I'm taking Ben." Locke warned pointing his gun towards Alex. Danielle ran in front of Alex and tried to keep her at a safe distance. Locke continued to walk away.

"Why?" Alex cried out after him. But she got no reply.

Danielle faced Alex, "Its better this way. His fate is none of our concern now. We should start heading back to the beach."

"Let's go." Jack said sharply. His face full of anger and still staring in the direction that Locke had walked off in. "We've been here long enough."


	3. Confession

Chapter 3

Confession

They had been traveling for hours, when the sun began to set. They made camp by the same river they had stopped at on the way to the radio tower. Jack had noticed Kate was sitting by herself away from the rest of the camp and walked over to where she was sitting.

"This seat taken?" Jack asked in a friendly tone.

"No, but you can have it if you want." She smiled up at him.

Jack removed his back pack and took a seat on the dirt next to her. They sat silent for a few minutes before Jack finally broke the silence.

"You hungry?"

"A little." she said looking at him start to pull something out of his bag.

Jack pulled out a mango and started to cut into it, "Here." he said as he gave her half.

"Thanks." Kate said as she accepted the piece of fruit.

Jack watched as she took a bite of the piece of mango he had given her.

"So Kate, what are you going to do if we all get rescued?"

Kate looked sadly at the piece of fruit in her hand. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, are you going to go back to being a fugitive again…on the run?"

Kate let out a weary sigh. "No Jack," she paused, and looked him in the eyes, "I'm done running."

Jack watched as the tears began to form in her eyes. He knew she was sincere about what she had just said. Jack looked away at the thought of what that meant. Jack couldn't picture Kate locked up in some jail. He couldn't imagine what Kate could have possibly done to deserve that. He knew that she was a good person, and had always believed that whatever Kate had done, she must have had a good reason to.

"What about you?" she asked, changing the subject. "You have any big plans?"

Jack thought about how lonely his life was before the crash; how busy his work kept him. There was nobody waiting for him at home. He thought about his mother, and if she would be happy upon his return.

"Honestly, I don't know. Maybe visit my mom…start working again."

"Are you and your mom close?" She asked.

"Nah, she blamed me for the problems she had with my dad…" Jack trailed off not really wanting to elaborate on the details. "What about your family?"

Kate let out a sad laugh, "I don't have a family anymore. Everyone I've ever cared about has either disowned me or died."

Jack watched as a tear ran down Kate's cheek. Kate quickly wiped it away. Jack was at a loss for words. He had the urge to hold her close and tell her that he would never abandon her no matter what she had done in the past. He swallowed hard, "You wanna talk about it?"

Kate looked at him for a moment then back down at what remained of her piece of fruit. Jack took her silence as a sign and began to change the subject, but Kate's sudden words silenced him.

"I was five years old when my mom left my dad and married my step-dad Wayne. He would beat her just about every chance he got." Kate looked up at Jack, a disturbed look on his face. "Not me, but he used to look at me though… in ways a step father should never look at his daughter. I caught him a few times watching me changing in my bedroom. I told my mom, and she wouldn't hear any of it, she told me it was nonsense. I guess she just thought that was my way of acting out against Wayne." Kate paused to wipe away a few more stray tears that had fallen. "One night my mom was working late, and I was watching some TV. Wayne came home drunk as usual, and sat next to me on the couch. I tried to get up to leave but he grabbed my arm, pulled me into his lap and tried to put his hand up my shirt. I grabbed the lamp behind me and hit him over the head. It knocked him out cold. I was 17 years old. After that I couldn't live there anymore, so I went to live with my friend Beth. Even after that, my mom still stayed with him." Kate's voice started to shake with anger. "I hated him and when I found out that he was actually my biological father; that half of him was inside me, I..."

Jack stopped Kate, knowing what she was going to say, that she had killed Wayne. "Kate, its okay," he said and gently pulled her close to him. Kate wrapped her arms around Jack and cried against his chest. A mixture of emotions ran through Jack as he thought about what Kate had just revealed. Jack had wanted to know for so long about Kate's past, it brought on a sense of closeness and understanding towards her, but he couldn't stand the torment that it was putting her through. Jack was upset at Wayne for what he had done to Kate and her mother, and mad at himself for pushing the subject. He didn't want her to think that this would change how he felt about her.

"Kate, listen to me," This prompted Kate to lift her head from Jack's chest to look at his face, "whatever happens to us, I want you to know that I will _always_ be there for you; no matter what."

Kate nodded and gave Jack a weak smile. "I know."

Jack cupped her face in his hands and gently wiped away the tears that remained with his thumbs and smiled affectionately at her. "Good." Jack had thought about kissing her at that moment. Kate's eyes, of vibrant shades of green due to her tears, gave their consent as Jack moved in closer. Their lips nearly connected when they both suddenly stopped as they heard the startling sound of both Carl and Danielle shouting out into the darkness for Alex.


	4. Delivery

Chapter 4

Delivery (FF)

Jack lay asleep on the couch in the living room of his home. Something he did often after staying up all night drinking. A knock at the door startled him awake. He looked at his watch, which read 12:30p.m. He sat up, rubbed his eyes and looked at the time again. The knocking at the door grew louder. Jack groaned in annoyance. "Hold on." He said as he stood up and headed to the door.

Another loud knock sounded through the door. Jack stubbed his toe on an empty vodka bottle. His place was cluttered with empty alcohol bottles of various kinds, books, maps, and paper scattered around on the floor.

"Dammit!" he said through clenched teeth. "I'm coming!" He shouted louder so the person outside the door could hear him.

He reached the door and jerked it open, staring at the person at his door.

It was a delivery man. More like a kid, in his late teens. He stepped back at the sight of Jack, startled by his rough appearance. Since Jack's previous encounter with the new chief of surgery, he was forced to take a vacation, so he could seek the necessary therapy that was strongly suggested. Jack hadn't changed his shirt in two days. Hadn't combed his hair or trimmed his beard.

The kid looked at Jack with a nervous expression. "Uh, here's your pizza sir." He said as he handed Jack the warm pizza box.

"I didn't order this." He said confused, and handed the box back to the kid.

"We'll it's already been paid for, and it's to this address…so do you want it, cause I got other deliveries to make?" The kid said, as he handed the box back to Jack swiftly turning to leave so that Jack wouldn't give it back.

Jack stood in the doorway puzzled, and watched as the kid drove away. Jack peered down the street to see if anybody was around then went back inside.

He tossed the box on top of the already cluttered table, and went into the kitchen. Jack searched the cabinets for a drink, but all the bottles he found were empty. Jack cursed under his breath and threw an empty bottle in the sink. He glanced back over at the pizza box and walked over to it. He studied it for a moment, before carefully opening it as if expecting it to suddenly explode. But it was just a pizza: vegetarian.

Jack suddenly thought of Kate. Had she sent this to him? He thought. But then he remembered their last encounter two days ago, and quickly dismissed the idea that it could possibly be from Kate. _It was probably some weird mix up._ _Or was it?_

Jack lifted up a slice and saw that there was something underneath. His jaw dropped as he realized what it was. It was a hotel key, with the number 23 on it. There was a note with it.

_**Come find me, you know where.**_

_**And bring the pizza!**_

It was Kate's handwriting and Jack knew exactly where she was.


	5. Coming Out

Chapter 5

Coming out (FF)

Jack sat in his car in the parking lot of the Motel 8. He surveyed the area for signs of Kate's car. It wasn't there. After some debate, he finally got out of his car and went to the room. Jack unlocked the door and went in. The room was empty, except for a queen size bed, nightstand with an alarm-clock, a TV and a small fridge with a microwave on it. Jack placed the pizza on top of the microwave and sat on the end of the bed. He looked around and thought about the last time he had been in this room. It was four months ago: the day Kate told him that they shouldn't see each other anymore, that it was best for both of them to just move on and forget about what had happened on the island. Jack knew it was more than that. He knew that Kate would never forget about what happened on the island; Knew that she couldn't just forget about everything that they had been through together, and that he still loved her. Jack tried to fight the tears that were forming in his eyes, but he couldn't stop them. He brought his already clenched fist to his forehead and pressed the heel of his palms into his eyes. Just as he did this, he heard the sound of the door closing, and looked up to see Kate. Her eyes locked onto Jack, taking him in, as he looked at her. She looked as though she had rushed to get there. Her hair neatly done up, except for a few stray strands delicately draping her face. She moved from the door and stood in front of him. Jack knew Kate saw the pain in his face and the tears in his eyes and he looked down from her gaze.

Kate slowly reached out a single hand and gently ran her fingers through his hair. Jack grabbed her hips and pulled her close to him, as Kate cradled his head against her stomach; tears filled their eyes. Jack didn't care why she was there, he missed her closeness, her warmth and her sweet smell, all that mattered was that she was there.

A few moments had past when Kate started to break free from his grasp. Jack held onto her hands as if for dear life. He feared that she would suddenly leave him again.

"No, don't go. Please." He said desperately.

"I'm not going anywhere." She softly reassured him. Kate knelt down in front of him holding onto his hands. "Jack, what happened?" She asked studying his right hand. It was wrapped in surgical gauze with his fingers partially exposed.

"Just a little accident, it's fine." He gave her hand a squeeze. "See?" Jack gave her a weak smile as Kate looked at him with concern.

"Jack, I came here to help you."

"Then you'll come with me?" He asked. He searched her eyes and knew her answer before she had said it.

"I can't." She said unconvincingly.

"Right, because of what's his name…Tom?" He said dryly.

"Yes." Kate said; her voice barely audible.

"That's funny Kate, because we both know Tom's dead! So do you wanna tell me what's really going on?"

Kate stood up flustered. "How do you know that?"

"I did my research Kate." Jack stood up and took a step towards her.

"You don't know anything about it!" She yelled with anger and resentment.

"I have the newspaper article and his obituary Kate! He was shot in the chest 3 times by a police officer who was in pursuit of a wanted criminal. It's pretty clear about how he died, unless there's something you'd like to add?" Tears fell from Kate's eyes as she looked at Jack in utter disbelief. Jack paused for a moment noticing her clenched fists, for a split second he thought she was going to hit him. He knew he had hurt her, but he couldn't stop, he was unable to control his need for answers and he continued. "So stop pretending and tell me the truth! Why won't you come with me? Why did you leave?"

"Because they're watching us JACK! All the time…and listening to what we say. I lied about being with Tom, because I thought it would help you move on. Jack I had no choice, I couldn't risk losing y…"

"When are you going to stop doing things by yourself, we could've worked out a plan together!"

"You don't get it do you? They know what your planning Jack and they're going to do everything in their power to stop you. It's not like you've been discreet about it… Jack your silence is worth more to them, than your life. Look at what happened to Michael?"

"I know." He said his tone much lower. He let out a regretful sigh. "He was planning to meet with me the day after he…"

"Committed suicide?! Jack, that was no suicide, they killed him."

Jack remembered reading the obituary on the airplane and the hopelessness he felt at that moment. Without Michael's help there was no chance of finding the island. He felt defeated, like his whole life was pointless. It was that night on the bridge that Jack decided that he wanted it to end. He felt isolated from the world; the loneliness unbearable. Even Kate would not answer or return his calls. He was angry at Michael, angry at Kate, but mostly angry at himself.

"He was so scared and paranoid, and refused to talk to me. But I gave him a guilt trip and told him that he owed it to me for what he did to us, to Ana, and Libby. He was going to give me the coordinates to the island." Jack said, his eyes staring off into the distance at nothing in particular.

"Hey," Kate said softly, and gently touched his arm as if to break him out of his trance, "it wasn't your fault Jack. When are you going to stop blaming yourself for everything?" Jack fixed his eyes on Kate, and they sat there on the bed in silence for a moment.

"Kate, I know you think I'm crazy, but trust me when I say we have to go back. You and I do not belong here, Kate I know you feel it too." Kate looked away from him. "When we first got back, I started to have these dreams. I'm alone in the middle of the jungle and then I hear a voice, and it's telling me to come back. Sometimes it's many voices all at once, telling me that they need my help. The voices started turning into cries and screams. Then I started hearing them while I was awake. One day I was assisting another physician on a routine operation, we're in the middle of it when suddenly standing there in the room right beside me is Locke, and he tells me that that was not what I was supposed to be doing." He stopped as he saw the disturbed look on Kate's face, as if she knew exactly what he was talking about.

"You've seen them too." He stated. Kate nodded, almost unconsciously, and then shook her head.

"No, but they were only dreams. I mean, I saw Boone in one and Boone is dead Jack."

"What did he say?"

"He said…" She hesitated. "Jack it's not important."

"Kate, what did he say?" He said as he gripped Kate's shoulders.

"That you need me, and I'm supposed to help you. But it was a dream." She repeated. Jack ignored her last statement.

"Where were you?" He asked. Kate looked at him confused and slightly annoyed.

"What?"

"In the dream, were you in the jungle? Where were you?" He said looking intently at her. Kate closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.

"It wasn't me, it was you. In the jungle…I was watching you, I tried to talk to you, but you couldn't hear me… you looked lost. Then Boone was standing next to me all of a sudden, and that's when he told me." This put Jack deep into thought, and Kate watched as he subconsciously chewed the inside of his cheek.

Kate reached out and grabbed his face in her hands. "Jack it doesn't mean anything."

"Yes it does, they all do. It's another piece to the puzzle."

Kate rolled her eyes up to the ceiling and stood up. She let out an exhausted sigh, which to Jack sounded like a growl.

"Hey, where are you going?" He said as he watched her walk away from him.

"Just getting some pizza, I'm starving. You should eat too."

Jack hadn't noticed until that moment that he was in fact very hungry, and decided that the growl he heard earlier was just his stomach. Kate sat down across from him on the bed and handed him a slice. He watched as she proceeded to devour her slice, before starting on his own. He couldn't help chuckling to himself.

"Whuh?" She said with her mouth full.

He shook his head "Nothing. Thanks for the pizza." Kate looked at him suspiciously.

"You're welcome." She said after swallowing forcefully.

Jack looked around the room again. "Are they watching us now?" He asked eying the smoke detector.

"I don't think so, I was very careful. They still think I'm at work. I had to take the bus, which I changed several timed. I also moved your car down the street. It's in a parking garage."

"How did you…?"

"Jack I know how to hot-wire a car. Actually without a driver's side window, it was pretty easy."

Jack let out an amused laugh.

Kate stayed silent and glanced at the clock.

"What is it?" He asked.

"I have to go." She got up, reached into her pocket and pulled out a business card.

Jack took it and looked at it carefully. It said Roger's Mechanic Shop.

"Turn it over, there's a number on the back." She added.

Jack flipped over the card and looked at the initials P.W. that were written above the number. He looked at Kate with the question formed on his lips, but Kate had already started to answer.

"Penelope Widmore. She contacted me 4 months ago asking me all kinds of questions. She was the one looking for Desmond. Somehow she knew we had crashed on the same island and asked if I could help her find it. I told her that I had seen him, but had no idea how to find the island. She wanted to speak to you too, but I told her that you didn't know anything either."

"What? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because that evening when I got out of work, there was a man sitting in my car waiting for me. He had a gun and told me that he knew I had broken my vow of silence, and if they so much as thought that I had broken it again, that they would not only kill me, but they would hurt you as well."

Jack suddenly realized, that it was that same night Kate arranged to meet him there at that very same motel room, the night that she had told him they were better off apart. It was fear that he saw in her eyes that night. It was all becoming clearer, and yet deep down perhaps he had already known. Jack wondered why he hadn't received any threats._Why only Kate?_

"Kate I'm sorry." Was all he could manage. He stood in front of her and watched as she tucked a stray hair behind her ear.

"I thought that she might be able to help you somehow." Kate said averting his gaze.

"Don't you mean us?"

"I still haven't decided if I'm going. I don't know if I can go back there Jack." She said with a hint of sadness in her tone. She moved to the door and started to open it, but Jack followed and pressed his right hand firmly against the door preventing her from opening it.

"No Kate. Boone's right. I need you. We… we have to do this together." The desperation was back in his voice.

Kate stood with her back to Jack her right hand still gripping the handle on the door. She struggled trying to contain the tears that were forming.

"Please Kate." Kate closed her eyes as Jack breathed the words into her ear. Jack moved his hand from the door and gently placed it on top of Kate's hand still resting on the door knob. He closed his eyes and willed her to turn around. Jack opened his eyes and found a pair of glistening green eyes staring back at him. His lips didn't have far to go before they found hers. He could taste the tears on her lips. Her fingertips gripped his shirt and ran across the back of his neck and through his hair. It was something Jack had yearned for daily for four months and he knew that Kate had missed him too.

_Ok so there is more to this scene, but this chapter was just way too long, so you'll have to keep reading to see what happens next. Reviews are welcome! _


	6. Change in Plans

Chapter 6

Change in Plans (present day island)

Kate watched as Jack ran over to Danielle to find out what had happened, but Kate already knew: Alex left to find Locke and rescue her dad. Maybe she knew where he was. Kate knew how she felt. Ben might not have been the best dad to Alex, but he was all she had for a father and all she knew, even if he wasn't her biological father, Alex still loved him.

Kate walked up to Danielle who was arguing with Jack.

"It's too dark you'll never find her now. We'll look for her together as soon as the sun comes up." Jack said trying to reason with Danielle.

"She could be dead by morning. And you need to take these people back to the beach. No, I am going and I'm going alone."

Carl looked at Danielle and stepped forward. "I'm coming too. I think I know where she is going."

Danielle looked at Carl for a moment. "Fine, let's go."

Jack interjected. "Danielle, we need you to help us find the rest of the way back."

"I can lead us the rest of the way back." Kate said. Jack looked from Kate back to Danielle.

"What about when they come? I don't know if we can wait." Jack said.

"I already told you, this is my home now and I am not leaving." Danielle stepped back and started walking away from them. Carl had already gathered their things and followed behind her. He looked back at Jack and said, "Good luck."

Jack nodded, "Yeah you too."

Jack turned back to face Kate.

"She's a strong and smart girl, she can handle herself. Plus she knows this island probably better than anyone." Kate said trying to reassure Jack.

"And what happens if she finds Locke? He's got a gun."

"And they've got Danielle, who has survived on this island for 16 years, and spent that 16 years searching for her daughter. Danielle's not going to let anything happen to her now that she's found her."

Jack nodded in acceptance then looked to the sky. Kate followed his gaze upward. Dawn was still hours away and knew that he was contemplating whether or not they should keep moving. He looked back at Kate. "Do you think you could still lead us back in the dark?"

There was half a moon hanging in the night sky and it was enough for Kate. "Of course." She said confidently.

"Okay, I'll go make the announcement." Jack turned and walked off to address the rest of the camp. To Kate's surprise, nobody made any complaints in response to the sudden change of plan, and they started off into the night with hand made torches and the moon as their only source of light.

The sun was just rising as they made their way into the familiar surroundings of their camp. Sayid and Jin were standing guard and were the first to greet the exhausted travelers. Kate watched as Jin swooped Sun up into his arms, Sun was in tears but smiling and Kate was so happy that Jin and the rest had survived. She looked around and saw Hurley and Bernard followed by Juliet as they made their way over to the crowd. Juliet walked up to Jack and hugged him. "Glad to see that you made it back in one piece." Kate heard her tell Jack. He smiled back at Juliet and said "Yeah you too."

Normally Kate would have been jealous to see them together, but for some reason Kate was ok with it. She wasn't sure why it was different this time, but thought that maybe it had to do with the fact that she knew that he loved her. The thought of that moment brought a smile to her face. She moved from the crowd and headed towards her tend, but there was nothing there but ash and pieces of wood scattered in every direction. She had almost forgotten that her tent had been one of the 3 tents selected to be blown up. She moved on further down the beach to Sawyer's tent. He was the only person she didn't see greet the group when they came back and knew he must be sleeping in his tent.

She was surprised and somewhat relieved to find his tent to be empty. She started looking through one of his suitcase to find some of her stuff that she had left there.

"What the hell are you doing?" Kate heard Sawyer say from behind her. Kate wasn't startled though and continued looking through his stuff.

"I'm looking for my stuff, and a blanket." She said without looking at him.

He came into the tent and moved her aside. "I'll do it." He said sharply.

"Hey!" Kate protested, and then stood up behind him with her arms crossed against her chest.

"Why don't you stop with the act Sawyer?" Kate said as she watched him rummage through his stuff. He ignored her comment, but stood up in front of her as he roughly shoved some clothes and a blanket in her hands. He turned back around and grabbed something else.

"Oh and you'll need this too." Sawyer said coldly as he tossed a pregnancy test on top.

Kate looked at the test then back at Sawyer. "What the hell is this?" She asked him with anger and irritation in her voice.

"What the hell does it look like Kate? Now go take it so we can know for sure." He said. There was anger in his voice too, and something else. Kate recognized it as fear.

Kate hated it when he ordered her around. "I thought you didn't care!"

"I don't!" He shouted back.

Kate stood there for a moment hurt and in shock, his words still hung in the air above them. "I can't believe that after everything we have been through on this island… you haven't changed a bit?"

Kate had had enough and stormed out of Sawyer's tent. She knew that if she had stayed any longer that she would have punched him. She thought she heard Sawyer shout something at her as she left, but she was already far from his tent to understand his words and didn't care to hear them either. Kate walked into the jungle without a clue as to where she was going. She cursed Sawyer under her breath. _How could he be so cold?_ She thought. She stopped walking and found herself deep into the jungle. She looked at the pregnancy test. "Fine." She said angrily aloud. Kate ripped open the box and pulled the test out discarding its packaging to the jungle floor. She stared at the test and contemplated whether or not she wanted to know the results. She did.

Kate sat on a log anxiously awaiting the results. She held the test that she had taken in her hand but refused to look at it yet. _Just another minute_ she told herself. A minute had passed. She closed her eyes, _ok this is it. _ Just as she was about to open her eyes and find out the truth, someone spoke her name, in a soft calm voice. Kate was startled and felt the test slip from her fingers onto the ground in front of her. It was Jack. Usually his presence was a welcome one, but out of all the people to come stumbling through the jungle at that moment, Jack was in fact the last person that Kate wanted to see. She held her breath and wished that the smoke monster would suddenly appear and carry her away.

"I saw you run into the jungle after the argument you had with Sawyer… I just wanted to make sure you were ok." Jack moved closer to her. She couldn't look at him, mortified that he had possibly overheard their argument.

"No I'm fine." she said quickly hoping that he hadn't seen the test that was laying on the ground right in between them. But he had. Jack remained calm as he nonchalantly picked up the test and carefully examined it as if it were nothing more than a rock or a curious leaf he had just found in the jungle. Kate bit her lip and nervously watched as he looked at it.

"It's negative." He said lightly as he passed the test back to Kate. Kate looked at him. It was hard for her to read his expression. She searched his eyes. There was no trace of judgment or anger or fear. Maybe he felt sorry for her she thought, or maybe he was just trying to be supportive, she couldn't tell. Her focus moved from Jack to the test. She studied it for herself and as Jack had said, it was negative. Kate sat back down on the log and let out a sigh of relief. He sat on the log next to her and both sat quietly for a bit. Kate didn't know what to say, she looked at Jack and could tell he wanted to say something, and now wore a sad expression on his face.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"Charlie's dead." He said in a low regretful voice.

"What!"

"Desmond came back from the underwater station and told us. He was pretty upset and really didn't go into more detail about it."

"Oh Charlie…how's Claire?"

"I haven't told her yet. Nobody has."

"She needs to know Jack."

"I know, and I'm gonna tell her, I just need to figure out how first."

Kate heard a noise in the jungle and stood up quickly. Jack sensed her alarm and stood next to her. Neither of them spoke. They scanned the area for signs of someone who may have been near them but saw nothing.

Suddenly three men came into view all armed with rifles wearing camouflage. They approached Jack and Kate cautiously.

"We don't want to hurt you, we just want to talk." Said the man who stood in the middle. His voice was husky, and he was slightly taller than the other two.

"Who are you?" Jack demanded.

"My name is Bill Stanley we came here on a freighter. Are you Jack Shephard?"

Jack ignored his question. "I thought you were supposed to meet us at the beach."

The man called Stanley glanced at the man to his left. "Well there has been a change in plans."


	7. The Task

Chapter 7

The Task (P.D.I.)

Jack and Kate stood close together, weaponless and out of anyone's earshot. There was no chance that any of the other survivors would hear them if they needed to call for help. Kate cursed herself for having gone so far from camp. Each of the men wore a bullet proof vest. They reminded Kate of some special ops team. She knew that these guys weren't there for search and rescue, and prayed that the mission wasn't to search and destroy.

"What do you want?" Jack asked in a firm but calm voice.

"All we want to do is help you and your friends get back home," Said Stanley as he took a step closer. "But, first we're going to need you to do something in return."

"And what's that?" Jack said keeping his eye on the other two men.

Stanley turned and took something from one of the other men. It was a large manila envelope. He tossed it to Jack. Jack opened the envelope and pulled out what looked like a red file. The file bore the name Benjamin Linus. "All you need to do is find this man and bring him to me and then we can all go home. It's that simple."

"What do you want with him?" Jack asked suspiciously.

"We just need to ask him a few questions?"

"And that's all?" Jack said with disbelief.

"That's all."

"And what if we can't find him?"

Stanley's tone changed from nice to threatening. "Oh you will find him, and you will bring him here, because if you don't, you and your people are going to die here." Stanley nodded to someone beyond their view and a fourth man dressed identical to the other three men emerged from the concealment of the jungle. The man had with him a woman with blond hair and blue eyes, her hands were cuffed behind her. It was Juliet.

"Jack, I'm sorry." There was fear in her eyes and in her voice.

"Let her go!" Jack shouted. "This is completely unnecessary. We'll do whatever it is you want…we'll bring Ben here, just let her go."

"That's what I want to hear Jack."

Jack glared at the man. One of the men behind Stanley took out a small grey case and handed it to Stanley. Stanley opened it and took out what looked like a gun, but it had a needle inside the barrel and a glass vial full of amber colored liquid that was attached to it. Kate thought that it looked rather similar to the auto-injector that Desmond used to inject the Dharma vaccine into his arm.

Stanley took it and walked over to Juliet, who started to struggle with the man that was holding her. "Get off me!" She screamed.

Jack sprinted and tackled the man called Stanley. The injector flew from Stanley's hand and landed in front of Kate. Kate reacted quickly and grabbed the device and just as she was about to smash it against the tree to ensure that they couldn't use it on them, something hit her hard against the chest and she fell to the ground gasping for breath. One of the other two men who was standing behind Stanley had hit Kate with the bottom of his rifle and now stood with his boot pressed against her chest and the tip of the barrel of his weapon now mere millimeters from her face.

"Don't move." The man said in a deep serious tone. Kate couldn't feel the injector in her hands anymore, and could hear Jack being restrained somewhere off in the distance.

"Bring her over here." Kate heard a husky voice say, and within seconds the pressure from the man's boot eased off her chest. He gripped Kate's arm tightly as he pulled her up and over to where Jack was. He was kneeling on the ground blood dripped from his lip. Kate looked at Stanley and saw that Jack wasn't the only one that had taken a beating, Stanley's lip and nose were bleeding, and there was a large gash over his right eye.

Stanley spat on the ground, came over and stood in front of Jack. He had the injector in his hand. "Do you know what this is Jack?" He said putting the injector close enough to Jack's face so he could get a good look at it. Jack gave no answer. "It's a deadly virus that is highly contagious. All I have to do is inject it into one of you, and within a week the rest of you will be dead." He said struggling to suppress his anger.

"This particular virus stays dormant for a period of up to 24 hours; then it becomes active. Once in its active stage it is able to be contracted by anyone who gets near it. 24 hours from the time the virus becomes active, unless the person receives the proper treatment from us, they will die."

Both Jack and Kate were horrified by what they just heard. Stanley walked over to Juliet.

"Don't you do it…Stanley NO!" Jack pleaded, but it was useless. Stanley had injected Juliet with the virus.

He turned back to Jack. "You now have 48 hours until she dies. Bring us Ben and she will get the treatment. You can save her Jack, I suggest you hurry."

"You son of a bitch." Jack shouted horrified at what had just happened. The men that surrounded them released and un-cuffed Juliet then retreated back into the jungle.

Before he left, Stanley threw Kate a radio and instructed her to call once they've found him.

Jack helped Juliet to her feet and examined the injection site.

"How do you feel?" He asked Juliet as he looked at her with concern

"I…I don't know…a little nauseous…but it's not bad." She laughed slightly. "It's probably just the fact of knowing that I'll be dead in two days."

"Don't say that. Juliet you are not going to die. We will find Ben."

"How? You don't know where he is, and if Locke took him, he could be dead for all you know."

Jack looked back at Kate for some support.

"Come on, let's get her to someplace safe." Kate said.

"Well we can't go back to the camp. None of us can, we can't risk infecting everyone else." Jack said.

"What about the caves?" Kate asked.

"You can come with us." Jack said to Juliet.

Juliet shook her head. "So I can infect you? No!"

"How do you know you haven't already?"

"Jack we're running out of time, we need to decide and start moving." Kate said interrupting them.

Jack nodded then looked back to Juliet. "I'll be fine at the caves." She stated.

"Ok, let's go." Jack sighed in defeat.

Jack Kate and Juliet started on their way to the caves. Jack pulled out the black walkie that he had taken from Ben earlier and prayed that someone would respond before he spoke. "Hurley, are you there? Please answer."

There was nothing but silence on the other end. Jack tried again.

"Is anyone there? It's Jack."

"Maybe they don't have it on." Kate said.

"_Jack, we're here. Go ahead."_ A voice broke through. Jack sighed in relief.

"Sun! This is very important; no one can go to the caves for any reason. You have to make sure that everyone stays at the beach. Tell Sayid that the people who are supposed to rescue us aren't who they say they are. They are very dangerous."

"_Jack what happened, where are you?_"

"Sun, I can't explain right now, you're just going to have to trust me. Kate and Juliet are with me, and we won't be back for a few days. Tell Sayid and stay on the beach. Just remember that these people are armed and dangerous."

"_What people?_"

"The ones from Naomi's boat. Sun Promise me."

"_O—okay, I promise…Jack wait_."

"Yes Sun?"

"_Be careful_."

"You too."

* * *

_Hey everyone, I just want to say thank you for continuing with this story. I know that it doesn't seem like this is going anywhere, but I promise you that it is. I just did the outline for this entire story last night, and it is going to be long. I'm going to leave you with the titles for the next few chapters as a sort of preview of what's to come. _;)

_Ch8: On the Run_

_Ch9: Time for Redemption._

_Ch:10: Out of Time_

_Ch:11: Telling Lies_

_Ok that's all for now. Will update as soon as I can!_


	8. On the Run

Chapter 8

On the Run (FF) _Warning: this chapter contains some adult content. Nothing that is distasteful I promise. PG-13 from this point on._

Jack felt the leaves as he lay on the jungle floor. He opened his eyes to the soft rhythmic swaying of the canopy of trees above him. He could hear nothing, but the wind blowing through the trees. Jack felt a sense of calm come over him as small rays of sunlight peeked in through the jungle's canopy. The serenity of the moment was disturbed however as a shadow fell over Jack. A figure stood over him. Jack propped himself up onto his elbows to see who was casting the shadow. Jack could not see who the man was, but there was a familiarity to his voice as he spoke.

"How long are you going to wait Jack? They're all waiting for you. I think it's time you finally woke up."

The towering shadow grew till it encompassed the entire jungle, and all Jack could see now was black.

Jack jolted awake and his heart pounded. Jack sighed in relief as he looked at Kate. She was asleep; her face rested on his chest just under his chin and her right hand lay across it. Jack felt the warmth of her naked body next to his under the concealment of the sheets, their legs still entwined together. He held onto her tightly as if trying to hold onto the moment forever. Kate stirred and opened her eyes.

"Hey." Jack said as he smiled down at her.

"Hey… You ok?" She said looking up at him.

"Yeah…" Jack kissed her forehead. "It was just a dream."

She reached up and gently ran her fingers through his beard. Her thumb traced his bottom lip then she leaned in close and replaced her thumb with her lips. Jack closed his eyes as she kissed him gently. Without breaking the kiss Jack shifted on top of her, his hands delicately brushed back her hair and moved along the sides of her face caressing her cheeks as their kiss reached its crescendo then their momentum slowed and their lips reluctantly parted due to their need for air.

Jack looked into Kate's eyes and saw sadness in them. Even when she smiled up at him, it was still there.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"I'm not supposed to be here. They're going to know I wasn't at work. My car is still there. They'll find us…"

"Shh…it's going to be alright." He said softly and put a finger to her lips.

"Where are you Jack?" She asked him searching his eyes.

"Wha' right here, where else would I be?" He asked confused.

"No, your hiding," she touched his beard, "behind this…inside your work…your false sense of security. When is the real Jack going to wake up?"

Jack opened his mouth to say something but nothing came. It was the same thing he heard the man tell him in his dream. He looked at her curiously for a moment.

"How do you know that this isn't the real me Kate; what if the old me was the one who was hiding?"

Kate move out from under him and started searching for her clothes. "Trust me Jack, from a person whose life for a long time was nothing but running and hiding, I know when someone is trying to hide." Jack watched as she got dressed.

"So that makes you an expert?" He asked amused.

"Yep, it does." She said as she playfully threw Jack's pants at him.

Jack caught them and started to get dressed. He looked at the clock which read 5:30 pm. "Look, let's get out of here. We'll go pick up your car at work and then go to my place." Jack watched as Kate raised an eyebrow. "Or we can stay at your place whatever you prefer." He added trying to get her approval. Kate still looked apprehensive about the suggested plan.

"Okay, but we can't talk about anything regarding Penelope, or plans to get back to the island. Once we walk out that door, we have to assume that they are listening to and even watching us. We have to be very careful about what we say."

Jack nodded. "Okay."

"I'm ready." She said.

"Let's go." He said.

Jack and Kate walked over to the door. Jack stopped in front of the door, grabbed Kate by the hand and pulled her close to him. "We'll be ok as long as we stay together." He said with confidence, then bent down and gave her a kiss. She looked at him and nodded. Jack opened the door and they left the hotel room.

They reached Kate's office in less than 15 minutes. The parking lot was nearly empty with the sun low in the sky and the lights in the parking lot were beginning to flicker on. A few lights were still on in the building. Jack pulled up next to her car. Kate was about to get out of the car, when Jack told her to wait, and motioned to a lady that was walking to another car nearby. Kate followed his gaze and saw the woman too.

"That's Stella, she works in the same office, really nice lady." Kate said and opened the door. The woman looked over and started to walk towards them in the parking lot. Jack opened his door and got out too.

"Kate my dear!" Stella exclaimed as she got closer.

"Hello Stella." Kate said and smiled at the woman.

Stella gave Jack the once over. "Now I see where you disappeared off to." Stella said as she smiled at Jack. "And you must be Jack I presume?" She held out her hand to Jack, which he shook. She was an older woman with short white colored hair which matched her ghostly pale skin. She had dark blue eyes that seemed to just pierce right through him and rose-colored cheeks which matched the color of her lips. Upon closer examination, Jack noticed that she wore a gold pin on her sweater that was a snake in the shape of a circle with its tail in its mouth. "I'm Stella Hawking."

"Pleased to meet you Ms. Hawking." Jack said. Stella frowned.

"Oh no, please call me Stella. Our Kate has told me so much about you."

Jack smiled "Well I hope it wasn't all too bad."

"Oh don't be silly. She told me that you saved her life."

Jack looked at Kate but spoke to Stella, "Yeah, but she saved my life too."

"And out of all those people who crashed with you, you two were the only ones who survived. Now that's not just lucky, that's fate my dear." Stella said to Jack. She looked at Kate then back to Jack. "There must be something important in this world that you are still meant to do, otherwise, why would you still be alive?" her tone was slightly different when she spoke this time. There was an intense stare between them almost as if she were trying to read his mind. Jack broke the stare first. "Well we have to get going."

"Of course, it's getting late. It was so nice to finally get to meet you Jack." Stella looked at Kate, "Goodbye Kate."

"Goodnight Stella." Kate said as she got into her own vehicle.

Stella looked back at Jack, "Don't get lost Jack." She said almost sternly.

Jack looked at the woman strangely, "I won't." He said.

"Well goodnight." And she waved to them as she walked back over to her car.

Jack got in his car and followed Kate to her apartment. As he drove, he couldn't help but think about how strange that conversation was. He wondered if Kate had noticed it and made a mental note to ask her about it. Then he remembered that they couldn't talk about it at her place or his for that matter. He would have to wait until they were in a safe place.

They reached Kate's apartment and went together to the door. Kate looked at the door which was slightly ajar and let out a soft gasp. Jack pushed the door open and turned on the lights. The place looked like a tornado had hit it. Tables and chairs were tuned over. The couch had stuffing coming out of it from holes that had been cut into it. Books were flung everywhere. In her bedroom they found the mattress leaning against the window and all her clothes were scattered on the floor. Someone was searching for something.

"Get what you need and let's get out of here." Jack said. Kate grabbed a large duffel bag and a back pack and proceeded to throw in clothes and shoes and pictures; she went through the entire apartment packing things here and there. But it didn't take her long and soon they were on their way to Jack's home.

Jack and Kate approached his home. There were no signs of intruders and they walked in cautiously. Jack turned on the lights after he closed the door behind them.

"Looks like they were here too." Kate said looking at the cluttered floor.

Jack studied the place for a moment "No, this is how I left it."

Kate looked up at him. "You're not kidding, are you?"

Jack shook his head. "Sorry, no."

Kate started to make her way through the living room doing her best to avoid stepping on the various books and bottles that were in her way. She went to his room and to her surprise the bed was made, and the room wasn't cluttered except for the books he had stacked on his bed. Kate dropped her things and leaned her head out the door.

"You don't use this room much do you?" She called out to him.

Jack was doing something in the kitchen. "No, I usually sleep on the couch." He said loudly back.

Kate came back out into the living room, sat on the floor next to an atlas and looked at the page it was left open to. Jack entered the room with a plate of sandwiches in one hand and a large glass of juice in the other. "I hope you like peanut butter and jelly." He said as he handed her the glass of juice, "and this is orange juice." He smiled down at her then glanced at the book she was reading.

"Thank you." She said then took a sip of the juice.

"I wish I could offer you something else, but I haven't had a chance to go to the store and…"

Kate smiled at him. "No Jack, it's ok. This is perfect."

Jack took a seat on the floor right behind Kate. She had moved on to a book labeled 'Scientific Theories of Space and Time Travel'. Kate was skimming the table of contents with her index finger.

"They're all pretty much the same. Useless." He said.

Kate looked around the room. "You've read all of these books?"

"Yeah most of them, some I just skimmed through but it hasn't gotten me anywhere." He said his voice slightly agitated. Something caught his eye that lay next to the end of the sofa. Jack reached over and examined the book. It was leather bound and contained no title or any words on the outside coverings except for a symbol in the center: a large serpent made of gold, with its tail in its mouth. Jack stared at it, remembering the pin that Stella was wearing on her sweater.

"What is it?" Kate asked and peered curiously at the book.

"I don't know. I've never seen this book before." Jack said as he carefully opened the book. On the first page there was a single sentence, which he read aloud: "For those who seek to bend the laws of time." Under the sentence was a picture of an old fashioned key which had a clock inside the circular end. The clock was white with no dials and little tick marks all the way around.

Jack and Kate both looked at each other. Jack was about to ask Kate about Ms Hawking but she quickly put a finger to his lips and shook her head. "It's just some fictional novel that probably got mixed up with the rest." She said. Jack caught on and reluctantly closed the book. They would have to examine it later. Kate grabbed the book and slid it under the couch.

"It's late, we should get some rest." Jack said and stood up to go grab a blanket. Jack watched as Kate went into the bathroom to brush her teeth, then he opened the top dresser drawers and searched through the clothes. After a few minutes, he found what he was looking for. It had been over 8 hrs since the last time he had taken one and Jack was starting to feel nauseous and shaky. He couldn't fight the urge any longer and popped two pills into his mouth.

"What was that?" Kate asked as she looked at him, from the doorway.

"Nothing…just something to help me sleep." He said avoiding eye contact.

"Okay." She said. But Jack knew she could tell that he was lying. Jack stumbled out of the room.

"Whoa." She said as she helped him back to the couch. "Those work pretty fast." She said with a hint of irony in her voice.

Jack lay down on the couch and closed his eyes. Kate switched off the lights and lay down with him. She pulled the blanket over the both of them and rested her head against his chest.

"Goodnight Jack." She whispered.

"Goodnight Kate." He said softly.

* * *

_So I had to break up chapter 8 into two chapters. When I made the outline I wanted certain things to take place in each chapter, but when I actually wrote it out it was longer than I thought it was going to be so I decided to break it up that way. Chapter 9 is on its way. Please R&R : )_


	9. No More Hiding

Chapter 9

No More Hiding (FF)

Jack opened his eyes then squinted as the morning light came in through the window. It wasn't the light that woke him, but the absence of her presence. That empty feeling of being alone crept up inside him, but soon subsided as he heard the sound of the shower running in the bathroom down the hall. Jack slid his hand under the couch and felt for the book with the strange symbol on its cover that he and Kate looked at the night before, but it was gone. Instead of allowing himself to become anxious about the book's absence, he settled on the resolution that it was Kate who had moved it from its previous position and put it in a safer location.

Jack raised himself off the couch and moved in the direction of the bathroom. He paused as he heard Kate's voice humming spiritedly through the door. He smiled to himself and suddenly wished he had the courage to enter to satisfy his desire to be as intimate with her as he had been the evening before. Jack envied the water that poured down her body and his heart beat quickened at the thought of it. Even so, he still did not open the door, but instead entered his room and began packing his own things. Even though Kate had given him a valid reason for why she left, Jack knew she had the knack for getting close, and just when things began to feel right between them, she suddenly distanced herself from him, as if she couldn't allow herself to be happy. Jack didn't know if it was consciously done, but it was a bad habit that he was going to try to break her from.

Jack packed as if he was never to return. He searched his closet feverishly for something that he had put away months ago, something that he couldn't leave without. Jack smiled as his eyes landed on the object he was looking for: It was a small package, wrapped in brown paper and tied with a straw-like string. Jack untied the string and carefully unwrapped the package. Inside there was a small rectangular shaped wooden music box, with a beautiful blooming cherry blossom tree intricately carved into the lid with magnificent detailing and color. Jack bought it at the airport the last time he flew to Tokyo, it had reminded him of Kate. Jack never expected he would actually be able to give it to her, but now he thought that he might. Jack opened the box letting out its delicate little song. There was something inside: a ring. It was a gold band with three gems: two heart shaped emeralds and a slightly larger circular diamond between them. This ring was also intended for Kate. Jack's love for Kate was none like any he had ever experienced before, and he bought it knowing, that one day he would ask her to be his forever, whether it was now or years from now, it would always belong to her and her only. Jack's soul would never be whole without her.

Jack closed the box, re-wrapped it in its paper and string, and packed it safely away in his suitcase. He moved from the closet to the dresser, pausing with his hand on the drawer's knob. Jack didn't want to open the drawer that held the substance of his dark habit, a habit he knew he had to rid himself of. Even as he said in his mind that he did not need it, he couldn't stop his hand from opening the drawer. Jack soon found that the book wasn't the only thing that Kate had moved to a safe and hidden place. The bottle of pills were not inside, instead he found nothing but neatly folded rows of socks.

Jack drew in a deep breath and held it, because unlike the feeling he had with the absence of the book, he was unable to contain the dams of anxiousness that now flooded his mind. His eyes grew wide as he desperately rummaged through the contents of every drawer in the dresser.

Kate stood behind him in the doorway, clenching the towel that wrapped around her tight against her chest; her hair still dripping wet, and watched the scene in front of her.

"It's not there." She spoke finally, with an air of sadness. She knew the argument that was coming.

Jack froze at the sudden sound of her voice.

"Where is it?" Jack's voice failed to constrain his desperation.

Kate looked away from him and did not respond. Jack stood in front of her and clutched her at the shoulders. "Where is it Kate?!"

Kate clenched her jaws and looked at him with the same determination. With tears in her eyes she said firmly, "You'll never find them…Ever."

Jack closed his eyes trying to contain his frustration and anger. He loosened his grip on her shoulders, realizing the pain he was causing her, and then backed away from her shameful of his behavior.

"Kate, I'm so sorry." His voice broke as he said it. "I didn't mean…"

Kate moved in close to him and gently placed her hands on his face as she looked up into his tearful eyes. "I know. I know Jack," she stroked his beard from the angle of his jaw to his chin and kissed his lips. Jack embraced Kate tightly and the towel fell to the floor. Kate kissed him passionately sinking deeper into his arms. Jack lifted Kate and laid her on the bed without removing his lips from hers. Kate's fingers scurried to remove his clothing piece by piece.

One by one, the books that lay around them fell to the floor, with each pleasurable movement. Jack's desire for the drug departed; his quest for the elusive island, gone. The only thing he desired was her. No drug could compare to the blissfulness of this moment. It was as if his sole purpose was to please her and that nothing else in the world mattered. Even after Kate reached her climax and he had reached his, they remained in each others arms kissing tenderly.

"I love you." Jack said suddenly unable to contain himself.

Kate smiled softly at him. "And I…Love…You." She said giving him a kiss between each heartfelt word, then smiled at him again, this time with sadness and tears forming in her eyes. "I should've never left you Jack." She placed her head against his chest then whispered, "I'm sorry."

It was the second time that Kate had ever uttered those three words to him. Jack thought that he would never hear them again, and here she was saying it to him. In a matter of days, things had gone from hopeless, to hopeful. And for the first time, Jack was thankful that he hadn't succeeded in ending his life.

"But we're together now, and that's all that matters Kate." Jack said softly.

Kate was silent for a moment, then spoke, "We should get ready, I have a feeling it's going to be a long day."

Jack agreed, but neither of them moved. It was that need for a few more moments of peace, before they had to face the unknown events of the day.

Twenty minutes later and Jack was showered, dressed and ready to go. Kate was sitting on the couch reading a newspaper article that had been clipped out. It had their pictures above the article. She looked at Jack's picture, cropped hair, his face worn with exhaustion and sorrow and no beard. It was taken as they were being herded from the boat to the limousine that took them to begin their new lives.

"You wanna go get some breakfast?" She heard him say as he entered the room. Kate looked up from her article to answer, but the words were lost, and she stood up in front of him staring at his now beardless face.

"You cut it." She said smiling and touching his smooth face with her finger tips.

"No more hiding, right?"

"No more hiding."

* * *

Jack watched as Kate took a sip of her coffee. They sat at a booth in a far corner of the IHOP, next to the restrooms and the kitchen. Kate never understood why restaurants always did that, have the restrooms near the kitchen, it seemed so unsanitary. Kate was eying the two pay phones that were between the two doors that were labeled men and women. The place was packed, which is precisely why Kate chose the restaurant. She thought there was no way that they would try anything with a restaurant full of witnesses. Running from these guys was different from running from the cops. Cops always had rules, protocols, but these guys had no rules. These guys weren't looking to put them in any jail; they wanted to put them in the ground.

"So what do you think?" Jack asked. Kate knew he wasn't referring to the coffee.

"Seems alright." She said taking a quick glance to her left.

Jack took out his wallet and pulled out a business card. "Here's the mechanics shop I was telling you about."

"Yeah I think it's time I gave them a call." She smiled and took the card.

Kate started to get up but stopped as she felt Jack's hand grasp hers.

"I should go with you." Jack said slightly uneasy about her going by herself.

"No, it's better if you stay here. I'll just be five minutes." Kate said trying to reassure him. Jack nodded and took her place in the booth for a better view. Kate reached the phone lifted the receiver then dialed the number. "That will be two-dollars-and-thirty-five-cents." she heard the recording say. Kate deposited the change and thought as she listened to the line ring, _just where does this Penelope live? That's an awful lot of change just for one phone call. _Kate remembered she had a British accent and figured it was probably somewhere in England. Just then Kate heard a voice on the other end it was the same British accent.

"Hello?"

"Um hi, this is Kate Austen, you called me about four months ago about…about that place we were on…and I…I mean we, have decided that we want to help."

There was a moment of silence. Kate had almost thought that Penelope had hung up when she final said, "Kate? Who survived oceanic flight 815?"

"Yes, but I can't talk to you about it now." Kate lowered her voice, "We're risking our lives just talking to you…there are some dangerous people who are following us…If they found out…"

"Where are you?" Penelope said hastily.

"We're in a restaurant, an IHOP in Los Angeles California."

"I'll have someone pick you up."

"Where?"

"Do you think you can make it to the helipad at St. Sebastian's hospital? I'll have a chopper waiting for you."

"We'll be there." Just as the words left her lips, a man in a chef's uniform grabbed Kate's neck and shoved her into the women's restroom. She nearly fell over but caught herself by the edge of the sink. The man came up behind her griped a handful of her hair and forced her face against the mirror above the sink. His hips pressed firmly against her from behind. Kate struggled to free herself.

"Ah, ah, ah Kate." The man said in a deep gruff voice pressing his gun against her face. "I warned you. All you had to DO, was keep your damn mouth shut. It's really a shame, 'cause you're such a beautiful woman." The man let go of her hair and stood back. _This was it,_ Kate thought. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The sound of the shot was deafening. Kate clutched the side of her face and hit the floor. There was the muffled sound of two men struggling somewhere off in the distance. The beating in her chest was almost unbearable, and she struggled to take in breath, but she was still alive. She opened her eyes and saw Jack, he scooped her up into his arms and carried her out.

"Somebody call an ambulance!" She heard Jack shout. There were screams of shock. Jack laid Kate on the floor and looked at her, his face full of grief.

"Kate, Kate," She looked at him and told him that she was alright and started to sit up. She removed her hand slowly from her face which was wet with her own blood. Jack quickly placed a wet napkin against her wound. Kate winced with pain. Jack had tackled the man just as he pulled the trigger. The bullet struck the mirror behind her just an inch from her face. It was a piece of the mirror that lacerated her cheek as it shattered. Her assailant was still lying in the bathroom unconscious.

"Jack we have to go to St. Sebastian's." She said urgently.

"Wait, there's a closer hospital." Jack said.

"No it has to be that one, I'll explain on the way."

Jack nodded then helped her get to her feet. They made their way out of the restaurant and into their car.

"Wait, aren't you going to wait for the ambulance?" The restaurant's manager called out behind them.

"I can't wait, I'm taking her now." Jack said.

"But what do I tell the police? They will be here any moment!"

"Tell them a man tried to kill a woman in the restroom. Hopefully they get here before he wakes up."

The sudden thought of a dangerous killer waking up in the bathroom sent the manager into a panic, and he rushed back inside the restaurant.

Jack started the car and they were soon en route to St. Sebastian's.

Jack looked at Kate then cursed, he was furious.

"Dammit! If it wasn't for that stupid waitress…I mean one minute your on the phone, then the waitress spills her tray right next to me…I bend down to help her… I took my eyes off you for just a second, I look up and you're gone."

"I wondered what was taking you so long." Kate meant for that to come out as a joke, but Jack didn't find it the least bit amusing. It just made him look even graver than before. Kate immediately regretted saying this to him. "Jack, it wasn't your fault."

"Yes it was! I almost lost you today and it was MY fault." Jack said in a shaky voice as tears formed in his eyes. "I thought I was too late, I thought…" Jack stopped and took a deep breath.

"Don't…we're alive and that's all that matters."

Kate took his hand and interlocked her fingers with his. Jack squeezed her hand gently then brought it up to his lips and kissed her hand.

"Next time, I'm going with you."

Kate didn't argue with him and hoped that there wouldn't be a next time.

Jack pulled into St. Sebastian's staff parking lot and parked.

Jack looked at Kate, "So why here?"

"Penelope said she was sending someone to pick us up, I'm guessing that it's one of the few hospitals that have a helipad."

"A helipad? Where are we going?"

"I don't know, I didn't get a chance to find out."

Jack still looked apprehensive, but he didn't press it any further.

"Then we have to get to the roof." Jack stated.

They grabbed their bags and went into the hospital through the ER. Jack went into the supply room and grabbed a few things, then they took the elevator to the roof to wait for the helicopter.

Jack pulled out some gauze, ointments, tape and a surgical sewing kit. Kate looked at him nervously as he set everything neatly on a towel.

Jack took notice. "I'm gonna have to stitch that up Kate." He said motioning to her cheek. "Don't worry I brought something to numb it with." He said pulling out a small bottle. "A luxury we didn't have on the island." He placed several drops on a piece of gauze and told Kate to hold it on her wound for a few minutes. Jack started threading the needle. Kate watched him.

"Are you sure you want to leave all this? I mean there's a chance that we won't come back." She said.

"I know. And I'm alright with that."

Kate nodded then scooted closer to him. "I think it's numb."

Jack placed his hands on her face and examined the cut. It was about an inch long and ran horizontal to her cheek bone. "You'll feel some pulling but it shouldn't hurt."

Kate smiled, "Believe it or not this isn't the first time I've had stitches."

Jack smiled back, "Tree climbing accident?"

"Something like that." She said carefully trying not to move as the needle penetrated her skin. Jack was finished within a few minutes.

"It wasn't as deep as I thought, you only needed six stitches." He said pleased, then covered it with a small bandage.

"Thank you." She said as she leaned forward and gave him a kiss.

Suddenly they felt the wind picking up around them. They looked up to see a large black helicopter closing in to land. When it landed a tall man in a gray suit emerged out of the helicopter and trotted towards them. He addressed Kate first, "Are you Kate Austen?" He said loudly trying to speak over the loud whine of the helicopter's rotors that were still spinning.

"Yes." Kate answered the man loudly. The man looked at Jack. "This is Jack Shepard, he's coming too." She explained.

The man nodded and smiled, "Pleased to meet the both of you, I'm Andrew Neilson, shall we go then?" he said in a thick English accent. He grabbed Kate's duffel and moved in the direction back to the helicopter. Jack and Kate exchanged looks, then grabbed the rest of their things and followed.

Just after they got situated in their seats Jack asked Andrew where they were going.

"Not too far. There's a private airport just a few kilometers from here. Then we go from there to London, where Miss Widmore will be waiting for our arrival."

Before they knew it Jack and Kate were standing in the cabin of a full size private jet. The cabin was large and luxurious, with leather chairs, enough to seat ten people, and a long sofa. There were wood tables between some of the chairs, a bar fully stocked, three flat screen televisions all cocked to a different angle to optimize its guest's view, and a bathroom. Jack didn't need to go into it to know that it was much roomier than any bathroom he's ever used on a plane, in fact neither of them have ever been on a plane like this one before in their lives.

Mr. Neilson smiled as he watched them admire their new accommodations.

"We'll be in the air a little over 14 hours or so, so please make yourselves comfortable. There are meals prepared for you if you are hungry and plenty to drink if you get thirsty."

"Thank you." Jack and Kate said in unison.

"You're welcome. Miss Widmore made it very clear that you are to be well taken care of, and that you arrive safely in London. I will do everything in my power to make sure that you will." Mr. Neilson promised, and then made his way to the pilot's cabin at the front of the plane.

Jack and Kate sat down as they prepared to take off.

"Here we go." Jack said.

"Yeah, I just hope he keeps his promises."

Jack took her hand in his. "Yeah me too."

* * *

_Note: Okay disregard the chapter outline I posted with chapter seven, the chapters ran too long so I had to break them up. This chapter was six pages on Word and I decided not to break this one up and just keep it the length it was. I apologize for the lengthy amount of time it took to finish this chapter, and hope it was worth the wait. As always thank you for reading and reviews are always welcome._


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